Chapter Text
Chapter One
He stared hard at the woman pacing inside Jack’s office. She was angry, he could tell. Fratchety, Owen had called her and he could see the medical doctor watching the glass office carefully, silently observing her condition.
"Jack," he’d uttered the minute they were out of sight.
"Doctor?" The panicked voice on the other end answered. "Doctor what’s wrong?"
"The rift."
"What’s wrong with the rift?"
"The Master," he’d swallowed. "He’s landed the Tardis somewhere near the rift. You need to get there and stop him from leaving."
"Right," Jack answered. "Gwen, Owen, Tosh, Ianto, we need to get to the rift. Now!"
"Jack," he’d leaned back against the department store wall heavily. "He’s got Martha with him."
"Martha?"
"And their children. Don’t," his voice cracked. "Don’t do something typically stupid and Torchwood like. Don’t upset Martha."
"Children?" Jack repeated.
"Don’t let anyone get hurt," he’d pleaded quietly. "Especially Martha and the children."
"Ok Doctor," Jack answered in a soothing tone. "Get here as soon as you can. I don’t have to tell you we’re going to need your help on this."
"I’m coming in now," the Doctor agreed.
He’d dropped the toaster he’d been holding on the nearest shelf and had taken the back exit out of the store, grabbed the scooter Jack had bought for him and raced toward Torchwood. He had Martha. The Master had Martha and the Doctor knew, knew that whatever had happened he was holding her to him somehow with hypnosis. This was not Martha Jones. Martha Jones had walked the world to defeat the Master, she wouldn’t just willingly marry him and have his children. She couldn’t do that. She wouldn’t do that. She knew what the Master was. What he’d done.
She loves me, the Doctor thought to himself. If nothing else tells me this is wrong that fact does. Martha Jones is in love with me, the Doctor. She can’t have taken up with the Master because she loves me and I love her. Sure I didn’t tell her but she knew. She knew I loved her and needed her and that I didn’t think she was second best to Rose. She didn’t need me to tell her that. Everything the Master’s saying is a lie, he’s holding her by hypnosis.
He’d let the scooter skid to a halt near some rubbish bins a few streets over from Torchwood. The local pizza place let him keep his scooter there rather than pay for the meters and the Doctor made sure Torchwood ordered pizza two nights a week. Reaching for the helmet he’d been too distracted to put on, he turned and saw it on the back of the scooter when he couldn’t find the straps.
Deciding not to worry about bike safety for the moment he raced toward the rift. It was active. He could feel it pulsing with life and Time. Something was exciting it and the Doctor knew it had to be the Tardis, what worried him was that while he could feel the excitation of the rift he couldn’t feel the Tardis. It wasn’t in his mind. The Master wasn’t in his mind. He could feel neither of them and that meant something was seriously wrong.
The scream had told him he was too late. That there wasn’t a way for him to solve this. He’d heard Martha scream as he rounded the corner and his hearts broke as he saw them. Jack was behind the Master, handcuffing the silent Time Lord while Gwen and Tosh kept restraining hands on Martha.
"You can’t do this Jack!" She screamed. "Leave him alone!"
"Martha!" Jack looked as though she’d been possessed by some type of alien. "It’s the Master! He’s under the custody of Torchwood."
"This is all the Doctor’s doing isn’t it?" He could see she was crying then and the children in the pram had erupted into wails as well. He watched as Ianto knelt in front of it and began to rock it back and forth soothingly, calming the twins. He was good with children, the Doctor thought absently, small animals, raging weevils, Jack, all irrational beings seemed to be comforted by Ianto.
"Do we really need to do this here?" He heard the Master grumble. "You’re making quite a scene out of this."
"He’s right," Jack announced. "Everyone, inside now. Take Martha and the children to my office while I take this thing down to the cells."
"Want to switch roles?" The Master asked sarcastically. "I keep telling you Freak you really aren’t my type."
"Shut it," Jack answered as he tugged the Master toward the secret entrance to Torchwood.
"Gwen, Tosh," the Doctor called out then. "Let go of Martha. I’ll take her and the children inside. There’s no need to treat her like a criminal." He watched the two women as they looked at Jack, after 5 years they still didn’t trust him to make a decision without Jack’s approval. When Jack nodded Gwen released her grip on Martha’s shoulder and Tosh took her hands away from the pram. The Doctor tried his best to smile at both of them reassuringly. He could handle this.
"Martha," he tried to sound soothing. She’d been hypnotized and made to do Rassilon knew what against her will, he was sure she was agitated by that.
"Get away from me you bastard," she snapped.
"Martha," the Master stopped and forced Jack to turn so he could look at her. When she looked up the Doctor could see the other Time Lord smile reassuringly at her. "Just do what he says Martha. Don’t fight him on this. We’ll sort this out, the Doctor and I. Won’t we Doctor?" The other Time Lord looked at him.
"Of course," the Doctor answered reflexively. "We’ll work this out in no time. You just need to go to Jack’s office and rest while we do."
"Shut up," she snapped at the Doctor.
"Martha," the Master’s voice was still soothing. "Please, go to the Freak’s office with the children while we sort this out. Please, because I’m asking you to."
When she nodded the Doctor reached out to place a guiding hand on her shoulder. "Don’t you touch me!" She growled. "You stay away from me." He’d moved his hand away silently then. It would just take time for her to heal from this. In time they could mend what they had.
That had been an hour ago and she was still pacing Jack’s office angrily. Hadn’t spoken to anyone except to politely refuse the tea Ianto offered. She had just paced, occasionally walking one of the twins in her arms as she did. Jack was still dealing with the Master and the Doctor had simply stood by Owen’s desk and watched the office above him.
"I need to check her over," Owen said decisively.. "Think she’ll let me examine her if you go along?"
"What?"
"I need to examine her. Take her blood pressure, her pulse, make sure she and the child aren’t in distress. We don’t want what happened earlier to have consequences for her health. I don’t know what signs I’m looking for in a Time Lord fetus, I’ll need your input."
"I don’t know," the Doctor muttered.
"You don’t know if she’ll let us?" Owen asked.
"No, I don’t know what the signs of fetal distress would be." The Doctor answered. "We didn’t do live birth on Gallifrey for thousands of years before it was destroyed in the Time War. I don’t know what to look for."
"Right," Owen grumbled. "Another time for Owen to guess at the delicate complexity of medicine. Why didn’t I do like my mother wanted?"
"What’s that?"
"Cosmetic surgeon," Owen answered. "So much more money and so little stress."
"Doctor!" Jack’s voice rang out suddenly.
"What Jack?" He answered wearily and looked up at the office again.
"Has she said anything to anyone?"
"No."
"I want you to come down and question the Master. He isn’t telling me anything. All he does is ask about Martha and the children. Says he won’t tell me anything until we guarantee she’s all right. I want you to talk to him."
"Let Owen check her over," the Doctor answered. "There’s your excuse Owen. Tell her the Master’s requesting she be looked at before he’ll talk to us."
"Think that will help?" Owen asked.
"I do." The Doctor agreed. "Once she’s checked over I’ll go talk with the Master and see what we can get."
"Thank you," Jack clapped him on the back.
"Don’t thank me yet," the Doctor answered. "We haven’t gotten anything from him."